EDMONTON – Spencer Grahame and Karil Dadash Adeh combined for 41 kills to aid the Manitoba Bison in a wire-to-wire 3-2 (31-29, 22-25, 25-23, 14-25, 15-12) victory Friday evening at the Saville Centre.
Grahame had a team-high 21 kills of his own, while setter Sammy Ludwig paced the game with 44 assists.
Manitoba moves to 12-9 with the win and improves their lead over TRU for the 8th and final playoff spot in the Canada West. Alberta drops to 15-6, still holding onto 2nd place.
Alberta saw a great performance from Isaac Heslinga, who finished with a game-high 23 kills.
The first set was ever the microcosm of the game to come, where a back-and-forth frame turned into extras where the Bison would pull through 31-29. Grahame and Dadash Adeh both had a set-high seven kills.
Alberta rebounded in set two, with a 25-22 victory. Heslinga was the star this frame, finishing with a set-high seven kills.
The teams traded the third and fourth sets to set up an exciting fifth and final set. Dadash Adeh led the way in this one, finishing with a set-high four kills and carrying the momentum for the Bisons throughout the majority of the frame. The Bears made it competitive, but a .067 hitting percentage sunk the winning effort.
The teams return to action tomorrow night for their last regular season matchup of the year.